GB2220391A - A wheelbarrow - Google Patents

Abstract

A wheelbarrow (2) comprises a front wheel (4), axle means (6) on which the front wheel (4) rotates, a pair of handles (8), a pair of rear legs (10) positioned between the front wheel (4) and the handles (8), a hopper (12) and chassis means (14) for supporting the hopper (12), the chassis means (14) including a front portion which extends in front of the axle means (6). The hopper (12) may optionally be releaseably secured to the chassis means (14), in which case the wheelbarrow (2) includes a platform portion (20) for carrying goods when the hopper (12) is not in position. The platform portion may be a metal mesh. <IMAGE>

Description

A WHEELBARROW This invention relates to a wheelbarrow.

Wheelbarrows are well known and they are generally used for carrying loads from place to place.

Known builder's wheelbarrows are not always as efficient as they might be and there is a need for a wheelbarrow that can carry a greater load than known builder's wheelbarrows, and that gives a good load to lifting effort ratio. It is an aim of the present invention to provide such a wheelbarrow.

Accordingly, this invention provides a wheelbarrow comprising a front wheel, axle means on which the front wheel rotates, a pair of handles, a pair of rear legs positioned between the front wheel and the handles, a hopper, and chassis means for supporting the hopper, the chassis means including a front portion which extends in front of the axle means.

Preferably, the hopper is releaseably secured to the chassis means, the wheelbarrow then including a platform portion for carrying goods when the hopper is not in position. The wheelbarrow can then be used without the hopper on building sites to carry concrete blocks and other suitable equipment. When earth, sand, small stones or other similar material is required to be carried, then it is only necessary to fit the hopper in position. The blocks or other goods are carried on the platform portion when the hopper is not present and the platform portion generally gives the wheelbarrow a greater carrying capacity for concrete blocks and similar products than would be the case if the hopper were present. Because the front portion extends in front of the axle means, when a load is placed on the front portion and the back of the wheelbarrow is lifted, the axle means becomes a fulcrum point.The load put on the front portion increases the higher the back of the wheelbarrow is lifted.

Preferably, the front portion is a pair of struts extending one on either side of the front wheel. Other constructions for the front portion may be employed.

Preferably, the platform portion is an open framework. The open framework may be a mesh, usually a metal mesh.

The platform portion may have a first part which extends over the rear legs, and a second part which extends over the front wheel. The second part may enable the wheelbarrow to stand vertically on its front, thereby making cleaning/hosing down much simpler. Also, if the barrow is stood vertically on its front, then it may be stored in this position and several barrows can be stacked together in this position.

The handles preferably slope downwardly.

Advantageously, the handles define with adjacent parts of the chassis means angles of 113.coo The legs are preferably positioned further back than in a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

The legs are advantageously integrally formed with the chassis means. However, if desired, the legs may be separately formed from the chassis means.

Advantageously, the front wheel is smaller than the front wheel of a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

Preferably, the front wheel has a tyre which is 300-350mm in diameter. The tyre is preferably 100mm wide.

Preferably, the tyre is a 4 ply tyre. This is as compared to a 2 ply tyre as usually employed on conventional builder's wheelbarrows. The use of the 4 ply tyre makes the side wall of the tyre less prone to splitting.

The axle means is preferably an axle shaft. If desired however two stub axle members extending into the front wheel from either side could be employed.

The hopper is preferably secured to the chassis means by releaseable locking means. A presently preferred releaseable locking means is one or more split pins. The hopper may also be permanently secured to the chassis, in which case the platform portion may be omitted if desired. With a permanent hopper, the hopper may be bolted in position to give a wheelbarrow of large carrying capacity.

An embodiment of the invention will now be described solely by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is a side view of å wheelbarrow; Figure 2 is a top plan view of the wheelbarrow shown in Figure 1; Figure 3 is a top plan view like that shown in Figure 2 but with the hopper of the wheelbarrow removed; and Figure 4 is a side view like that shown in Figure 1 but with the hopper of the wheelbarrow removed and showing various manufacturing angles.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a wheelbarrow 2 comprising a front wheel 4, axle means in the form of an axle shaft 6 on which the front wheel 4 rotates, and a pair of handles 8. The wheelbarrow 2 also comprises a pair of rear legs 10 which are positioned between the front wheel 4 and the handles 8. The wheelbarrow 2 has a hopper 12 and chassis means 14 for supporting the hopper 12.

As shown in Figure 1, the hopper 12 is releaseably secured to the chassis means 14. Arrows 16 show how the hopper 12 is moved towards the chassis means 14 when it is desired to support the hopper 12 on the chassis means 14.

The chassis means 14 includes a front portion in the form of a pair of struts 18 and the struts 18 extend in front of the axle shaft 6. The chassis means 14 also comprises a platform portion 20 for carrying goods when the hopper 12 is not in position. The platform portion 20 is an open framework as can best be seen from Figure 2.

The open framework is a metal mesh.

As can be seen from Figures 1 and 4, the handles 8 slope downwardly. The handles 8 define with adjacent parts 22 of the chassis means 14 angles of 113.50.

The legs 10 are positioned further back than in a conventional builder's wheelbarrow. As can be seen from Figures 1 and 4, the legs 10 are integrally formed with the chassis means 14.

The front wheel 4 is smaller than the front wheel of a conventional builder's wheelbarrow. The front wheel 4 has a tyre 24 which is 300mm in diameter and lOOmm wide.

The tyre 24 is a 4 ply tyre.

The hopper 12 is releaseably secured to the chassis means 14 by releaseable locking means in the form of split pins 26. The split pins 26 pass through holes 28 in downwardly depending members 30.

The wheelbarrow 2 shown in Figures 1 to 4 has the capacity to carry over 50% more load in the lift and carry position than most existing conventional builder's wheelbarrows. This increase in load is attained by the novel shape of the chassis means 14 and the hopper 12.

Reference will now be made to the following examples which illustrate the advantages of the wheelbarrow 2 over a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

EXAMPLE I A conventional builder's wheelbarrow and the wheelbarrow 2 were supported in a carrying position with the rim 32 of the hopper 12 in a horizontal position and the legs 10 clear of the ground. In this carrying position, the two wheelbarrows were filled with water. The conventional builder's wheelbarrow was able to contain 40.88 litres or 0.040 cubic metres of water. The wheelbarrow 2 was able to contain 64.73 litres or 0.064 cubic metres of water.

The weight to lifting effort ratio of the old conventional builder's wheelbarrow and the new wheelbarrow 2 of the present invention are shown on the table given below. Both wheelbarrows were weighed at lOOmm from the end of their handles, with the handle tube end centre line being measured at 750mm from ground level to give an average carrying height. It will be seen from the table that not only was the hopper 12 of the new wheelbarrow 2 able to contain more water but the weight to lifting effort ratio was better than with the conventional ? builders wheelbarrow.

Lift Req.

in Kilos

Litres of water EXAMPLE II A test was conducted to compare the ability of a conventional builder's wheelbarrow and the wheelbarrow 2 of the present invention to carry 4" concrete blocks.

A survey showed that most builders' labourers using a conventional builder's wheelbarrow carried between eight and ten 4" concrete blocks in the hopper of the wheelbarrow.

When the wheelbarrow 2 of the present invention was used without the hopper 12, the 4" concrete blocks were supported on the platform portion 20. The platform portion 20 has a first part 34 which extends over the legs 10, and a second part 36 which extends over the front wheel 4. The section of the first part 34 that extends over the legs 10 is supported by support members 38.

The wheelbarrow 2 was tested on the same site and under the same general conditions as was employed for the carrying of the 4" concrete blocks in the conventional builder's wheelbarrows. With the wheelbarrow 2 of the present invention, it was found that the same labourers were able.

to carry between 12 and 14 of the 4" concrete blocks, the tests being conducted over a period of five hours.

The surface of the test site was wet earth and clay with crushed stone laid in various places. The wheelbarrow 2 exhibited greatest ability under load than the conventional builder's wheelbarrows. This was especially so during frontal tipping. The greater ability was attributed to the new design of the chassis means 14 together with the use of a slightly smaller wheel 4, thus giving the wheelbarrow 2 a lower centre of gravity.

Less effort was required to support the new wheelbarrow 2 as compared with the conventional wheelbarrows when carrying identical loads, thus supporting the results given in the above table.

The wheelbarrow 2 had the same overall size (ie periphery) as the conventional builder's wheelbarrows.

As mentioned above, the tyre 24 on the wheelbarrow 2 was 30Omm in diameter and 100mm wide and it was a 4 ply tyre. This was as compared with the tyre on the conventional builder's wheelbarrow which was 395mm in diameter, 95mm wide and was only a 2 ply tyre. The tyre 24 fitted to the wheelbarrow 2 was less prone to side wall splitting and it gave greater stability under load, i.e there was less of a tendency for the wheelbarrow 2 to wander as it was being pushed.

During the test, the wheelbarrow 2 was found to require less effort to empty it than was required with a conventional builder's wheelbarrow. This was due to the wheelbarrow 2 giving a better load to lifting effort ratio, due to the fact that the struts 18 are situated in front of the axle shaft 6. Thus, when a load is placed on the struts 18 and the back of the wheelbarrow 2 is lifted, the axle shaft 6 becomes a fulcrum point.

The redesigned handle angle as compared with the handles on a conventional builder's wheelbarrow were found to be more comfortable to hold and to enable the wheelbarrow 2 to be pushed or otherwise moved.

The new wheelbarrow 2 was found to have less chance of tipping backwards whilst retaining a load, due to the legs 10 being positioned further back than in a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

The wheelbarrow 2 was able to stand vertically on its front, the parts 40,42 engaging the ground. The ability of the wheelbarrow 2 to stand vertically on its front made cleaning/hosing down much simpler. The vertical standing position also enabled the wheelbarrow 2 easily to be stored and several wheelbarrows 2 could be stacked vertically if desired.

It is to be appreciated that the embodiment of the invention described above with reference to the accompanying drawings have been given by way of example only and that modifications may be effected. Thus, for example, the various sizes, dimensions and angles illustrated in Figure 4 can be varied. A pair of front wheels could be employed instead of just a single front wheel. Also, the front wheel could be a ball type of wheel.

Further, the platform portion 20 could be of solid construction instead of an open framework mesh if desired. With a permanently fixed hopper 12, the platform portion 20 may be omitted or altered, and the chassis means 14 may be of a different design.

The wheelbarrow 2 may be sold under the trade mark BLOCKBARROW if desired.

Claims (18)

1. A wheelbarrow comprising a front wheel, axle means on which the front wheel rotates, a pair of handles, a pair of rear legs positioned between the front wheel and the handles, a hopper, and chassis means for supporting the hopper, the chassis means including a front portion which extends in front of the axle means.

2. A wheelbarrow according to claim 1 in which the hopper is releaseably secured to the chassis means, the wheelbarrow then including a platform portion for carrying goods when the hopper is not in position.

3. A wheelbarrow according to claim 2 in which the platform portion is an open framework.

4. A wheelbarrow according to claim 3 in which the open framework is a mesh.

5. A wheelbarrow according to any one of claims 2 to 4 in which the platform portion has a first part which extends over the rear legs, and a second part which extends over the front wheel.

6. A wheelbarrow according to claim 1 in which the hopper is permanently secured to the chassis means.

7. A wheelbarrow according to any one of the preceding claims in which the front portion is a pair of struts extending one on either side of the front wheel.

8. A wheelbarrow according to any one of the preceding claims in which the handles slope downwardly.

9, A wheelbarrow according to claim 8 in which the handles define with adjacent parts of the chassis means angles of 113.ego

10. A wheelbarrow according to any one of the preceding claims in which the legs are positioned further back than in a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

11. A wheelbarrow according to any one of the preceding claims in which the legs are integrally formed with the chassis means.

12. A wheelbarrow according to any one of the preceding claims in which the front wheel is smaller than the front wheel of a conventional builder's wheelbarrow.

13. A wheelbarrow according to claim 12 in which the front wheel has a tyre which is 300-350mm in diameter.

14. A wheelbarrow according to claim 13 in which the tyre is a 4 ply tyre.

15. A wheelbarrow according to any.one of the preceding claims in which the axle means is an axle shaft.

16. A wheelbarrow according to any one of claims 2 to 5 in which the hopper is releaseably secured to the chassis means by releaseable locking means.

17. A wheelbarrow according to claim 16 in which the releaseable locking means is one or more split pins.

18. A wheelbarrow substantially as herein described with reference to the accompanying drawings.